The art world has an alluring, if somewhat illusory, exterior. It gives off the impression of being progressive, fluid, experimental — a space for outsiders of all kinds to converge and create. In reality, however, the art world is as guilty of many of the prejudices that skew contemporary culture surrounding issues of gender, race and age. Ageism has a special bond with the mainstream artistic establishment. Dealers, galleries, museums and curators are often criticized for sniffing out young artists. Often referred to as emerging artists, like villainous cartoon characters, they’re hungry for un ripened and unmediated artistic genius, the next big thing. The sentiment echoes persistent myths regarding creativity, such as psychologist Harvey Lehman’s 1953 conclusion that “the genius does not function equally well throughout the years of adulthood. Superior creativity rises relatively rapidly to a maximum which occurs usually in the 30s and then falls off slowly.”

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